1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a display device, and more particularly to a display device in which a plurality of light emitting elements are arranged in a matrix.
2. Background Information
Exterior-use display devices in which a plurality of light emitting elements are arranged in a matrix and various graphics or text is displayed have been in use for some time. With such a display device, it is known that incoming light incident at the face where the light emitting elements are disposed is reflected in the display observation direction, which decreases the contrast of the display device itself.
Various approaches have been adopted to minimize this decrease in contrast. For instance, a display device has been proposed that comprises a main canopy formed above the light emitting elements, and an auxiliary canopy provided separately from this main canopy (for example, see Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. H11-305689 and 2001-56647, etc.).
For example, the above described display device comprises a wiring board having means for driving light emitting elements, and a base or the like on which light emitting elements are arranged and fixed in a dot matrix, and the display device face comprises a main canopy for blocking incoming light from diagonally above the light emitting elements, and an auxiliary canopy located under the light emitting elements for minimizing surface reflection from the base.
With conventional display devices, however, it is not currently possible to obtain good contrast by adequately reducing the effect of sunlight or other such incoming light while ensuring a good viewing angle from below the display device.
That is, with the above-mentioned display device, if an attempt is made to ensure a good viewing angle from below the display device, the pixels and the auxiliary canopy have to be separated by a specific distance. Consequently, this increases the region between the pixels and the auxiliary canopy where incident light from the outside can be reflected in the display observation direction, and this leads to a decrease in contrast. Furthermore, no method has been found for adequately reducing the reflection of incoming light between the auxiliary canopy and the main canopy.